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First 70.3 - Santa Rosa vs. St. George
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I have a couple of calendar openings that make sense for me this year and I'm trying to make a decision between 70.3 St. George and 70. 3 Santa Rosa. Any suggestions?
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Re: First 70.3 - Santa Rosa vs. St. George [Tri_JC] [ In reply to ]
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One is a lot more challenging than the other.

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Re: First 70.3 - Santa Rosa vs. St. George [Tri_JC] [ In reply to ]
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One could be hot, cold, and/or windy.
The other could be hot.

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Re: First 70.3 - Santa Rosa vs. St. George [Tri_JC] [ In reply to ]
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I’m doing St.G...and i’ve Heard from numerous people “oh shit, that course is tough.”

No clue if Santa Rosa gets that sort of response.
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Re: First 70.3 - Santa Rosa vs. St. George [windschatten] [ In reply to ]
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windschatten wrote:
Santa Rosa is also as ugly as scarred Earth can be....although they seem to make changes to the bike course....

Right. Riding through one of the best wine regions on the planet is the epitome of ugliness - as opposed to the Utah desert. Totally.

Next races on the schedule: none at the moment
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Re: First 70.3 - Santa Rosa vs. St. George [Tri_JC] [ In reply to ]
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perhaps consider Wildflower. Tough? For sure!

I saw this on a white board in a window box at my daughters middle school...
List of what life owes you:
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2. __________
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Re: First 70.3 - Santa Rosa vs. St. George [Tri_JC] [ In reply to ]
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Don't do SR if you don't do well in potentially hot to very hot races. Utah is hillier on both the bike and the run. For the 1st race, I'd definitely go Santa Rosa.

Next races on the schedule: none at the moment
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Re: First 70.3 - Santa Rosa vs. St. George [windschatten] [ In reply to ]
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You're basing your comment on having ridden the course? If so that's somewhat surprising. Sure the new full course was a little boring with the loops at the end but unless you're riding with your eyes closed your comment must referring to another course.
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Re: First 70.3 - Santa Rosa vs. St. George [Tri_JC] [ In reply to ]
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I haven’t raced SR but I did Vineman several times. So I won’t comment on SR. I did ST George 4x, my favorite 70.3. Three years it was very warm to hot. 2016 we had wind, heavy cold rain. Lots of athletes pulled for hypothermia or DNF, brutal day.

The swim, expect water temps in the high fifty’s to low 60’s. If the wind kicks up it can be tough, just ask people that raced the 70.3 2016 or the full 2012.

Bike is tough, bring your climbing legs and be ready for some fast sections too. For the most part they do a good job keeping traffic separated from the athletes.

Run is hilly too and can be hot, especially with the heat refraction off the red rocks.

It’s a very well run race, lots of volunteers. St George is a beautiful area, head to Zion the day after, you won’t be disappointed.


Train safe & smart
Bob

Last edited by: Longboarder: Jan 16, 18 9:47
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Re: First 70.3 - Santa Rosa vs. St. George [Tri_JC] [ In reply to ]
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I did St. George as my first 70.3, and I do not regret it. Sure, the course has significant elevation gain on the bike and run, and weather can make it tough on both ends of the spectrum. But the scenery is amazing, and the event was extremely well run in my opinion. Years later, it is still my favorite course. If your training incorporates climbing on the bike, and hills/strength training on the run, you'll be fine. And hey, regardless of the difficulty, since it is your first 70.3, you can say you PR'd at St. George!
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Re: First 70.3 - Santa Rosa vs. St. George [alex_korr] [ In reply to ]
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I think he was referring to the wildfires they just had...
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Re: First 70.3 - Santa Rosa vs. St. George [bearlyfinish] [ In reply to ]
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which did not affect the bike or the run route at all....

Next races on the schedule: none at the moment
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Re: First 70.3 - Santa Rosa vs. St. George [Tri_JC] [ In reply to ]
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Tri_JC wrote:
I have a couple of calendar openings that make sense for me this year and I'm trying to make a decision between 70.3 St. George and 70. 3 Santa Rosa. Any suggestions?


I raced 70.3 StG in 2016 and the inaugural 70.3 Santa Rosa in 2017. They both have split transitions with bus transfers from T2/Finish to the swim venue/T1. This requires getting up earlier on race day. The bus ride from Santa Rosa to Lake Sonoma is probably twice the distance and it felt much earlier.

I seem to have all the weather luck at 70.3's. 2016 StG was frigid all day when it is more typical to finish with the run in 90°+F. Pack the closet is my motto for most races and especially this one. Assuming they don't change to a rolling start, also be prepared to deal with wind/cold at T1 while waiting for your swim wave. You can drop clothes at T1, but they made us do this well ahead of later swim waves.

For Santa Rosa last year the 70.3 race was held in May with the full held in July. It was frigid in May last year. It was warmer in AK than this part of CA. I didn't pack enough of the closet and ended up buying some arm warmers in town. They also ended up changing the swim course because the cold front had brought wind in the early morning and perhaps not from the typical prevailing direction. This shouldn't be an issue in July this year, but keep in mind the very early start and that the bike leg starts with a monster downhill. I raced Vineman the previous two years and my wife raced it 5 or 6 times. Early starts for that race in July could be foggy and chilly too.

As for terrain, all the previous posters have it nailed on terrain. The StG bike and run are both very hilly. Wind can be an issue there on the bike. Roads are decent after some rougher chipseal at the beginning of the bike. The run is right above town with an uphill start and a downhill finish. In the heat it is a killer.

The Santa Rosa bike course is fast. A good portion overlaps the old Vineman bike course, some in the same direction and some exactly opposite. Last year had a solid tailwind on the north part of the course and I remember the same for the 2015 Vineman (southbound). The southern part of the course has some really shitty roads and it can be hard to spot heaves and potholes with shadows and other riders around. It is slightly longer than 56 miles. The run is out and back along the creek and I found it very fast. The only elevation is up and over or under bridges. Last year it was pretty crowded on the second lap. Even with the hotter July weather I would guess the run is not as hot as what Vineman used to serve up. The path along the creek seemed to have a lot of shade.

Here's what I've got from my Garmins:


Ironman 70.3 StG
Bike 55.5 miles; 3,366’ elev
Run 13.1 miles; 932’ elev

Ironman 70.3 SR
Bike 56.4 miles; 1,903’ elev
Run 12.9 miles; 148’ elev

Both races were well run. StG was probably slightly better run because they've had years of experience.
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Re: First 70.3 - Santa Rosa vs. St. George [SummitAK] [ In reply to ]
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The SR 70.3 bike course has been taken off the site, I wonder if it is being changed.
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Re: First 70.3 - Santa Rosa vs. St. George [The Sloth] [ In reply to ]
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The Sloth wrote:
The SR 70.3 bike course has been taken off the site, I wonder if it is being changed.

After I posted here, I saw a reference about this on FB and Dave Latourette confirmed bike course changes for both the Santa Rosa half and full Ironman races.
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Re: First 70.3 - Santa Rosa vs. St. George [SummitAK] [ In reply to ]
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SummitAK wrote:
The Sloth wrote:
The SR 70.3 bike course has been taken off the site, I wonder if it is being changed.

After I posted here, I saw a reference about this on FB and Dave Latourette confirmed bike course changes for both the Santa Rosa half and full Ironman races.

Any comment on when it will be announced? The full is coming up before too long.

------------------------------------------------------------
Any run that doesn't include pooping in someone's front yard is a win.
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Re: First 70.3 - Santa Rosa vs. St. George [CCF] [ In reply to ]
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CCF wrote:
Any comment on when it will be announced? The full is coming up before too long.

The tone seemed to indicate it would be soon, but no timeline provided. This is at the top of the Ironman Santa Rosa FB page. It is a closed group so there's no option to share links. You can join. I think H20FUN to runs page.

I don't think Dave Latourette is officially involved in the SR races as he was for Vineman, but he has details. He posted that he has some info included in this update video on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/...FtU1nrIrA&sns=em It's 10 minutes + long so I didn't watch it.
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